WARRIORS INK JUNIOR COLLEGE STAR

 Guard Averaged 26.3 Points in NWAACC Tournament

 April 14, 2004

LEWISTON, Idaho-Lewis-Clark State College women’s basketball coach Brian Orr announced today that Nikki Haerling (Chelan, Wash./Wenatchee Valley College/Chelan HS) has signed a National letter of intent to attend school and play basketball for the Warriors.  She will enroll as a junior and have two years of eligibility remaining.

“Today we became a better basketball team,” said Orr.  “Nikki is the kind of player that makes everyone around her better.  She’s an excellent shooter, but she can also penetrate and finish and she gets to the foul line.   She is fundamentally sound, but what we like most about her game is her mental toughness.  We expect her to play a major role on next year’s team.”

The 5-7 guard was an NWAACC First Team All-Star selection and led the Knights in scoring, averaging 17.5 points per game.  She was the NWAACC tournament’s leading scorer, averaging 26.3 points per game and finishing with 79 points total in three games.  She was named Outstanding Freshman and Most Inspirational in 2002-03 and team MVP this past season.  In 2003-04, Haerling set a WVC single-season record by making 81 three-point field goals while shooting over 40 percent from behind the arc. 

A three-year starter at Chelan High School where she played for her father Mike, Haerling was named team MVP both her junior and senior seasons.  She joins Jerome High School standout Vanessa West in Coach Orr’s 2004 recruiting class.